In the Land of Darkness
by priceofpower
Summary: Sasuke is born blind in an alternate universe but what does that mean for him as a Uchiha? Does it prelude his anger and his hate? Any feedback would be lovely!
1. Chapter 1

"You're son will never see."

Itachi heard the doctor tell his parents while he held his little brother who gurgled unknowingly.

"He will never use Sharingan."

Their father grunted, offended. Their mother sobbed almost silently but Itachi heard. Sasuke flinched as if he knew what that meant.

"Is there anything that we can do?"

"I'm afraid not. There was a problem with blood getting to the visual parts of his brain. There's no cure." The doctor paused knowing exactly what that meant for the Uchiha Clan.

Sasuke Uchiha was the last of a dying people. They needed him to be strong, to represent that despite their dwindling numbers, that they were still to be feared and respected.

Sasuke represented a dangerous change.

Itachi knew and he held his little brother close. "Don't worry, otouto, I'll always be there for you. Always."

Sasuke opened his watery onyx eyes, gazing towards his older brother but seeing nothing. There would never be the sharpness or the glint of red behind those dark abysses.

It made Itachi uneasy.

...

"No, Sasuke, that's not right," his father barked as Sasuke failed yet again to produce the flame from his core.

He squeezed his eyes closed focusing all his energy, all his chakra on the heat inside his body. His father would never let him join the academy if he couldn't do this one thing.

"Like this." His father's rough hands grabbed Sasuke's and pressed them against his chest. Sasuke's blind eyes went wide as he felt the surge of Chakra pulse through his father's body, from his stomach to his heart, up his throat and erupt like a dragon's flame out his mouth.

He couldn't see it but he felt the astonishing heat against his cheeks, scorning him for being such a failure.

"You're brother was able to do this by your age, why can't you."

Sasuke gritted his teeth. He would show to his father that he could do this. That was not just a shadow of his brother, that he was his own being.

He positioned himself on the edge of the dock. He shakily did the hand signs, trying to remember the exact shape of his father's hands. He felt the surge of heated chakra pulse through his own body, felt the sweet burn on his lips as it poured from his mouth.

But he knew just by the feel of the heat that it was nothing to his father's.

He heard the man sigh behind him. "I'll see you at dinner."

He heard the echoing footsteps of the man leave.

Sasuke sat down on the chipping rotting wood in defeat. He pressed his hands to his useless eyes and cursed himself. He didn't possess anything of the Uchiha clan. How can he bring honor to his family if he can't do anything right?

He scratched at his eyelids.

He would do this.

He would prove his father wrong.

After another deep inhale, he stood up slowly, facing towards the cool air of the lake.

...

"Otouto, what's wrong with your face?"

Sasuke laid in the grass exhausted, his insides scorched. He had no idea if he got anything accomplished today but his lips were burned and his cheeks were raw.

"I'm trying to do the fireball jutsu but I don't even know if I'm doing it right to know for sure if I'm improving." What he didn't say was that father just left him out here and he had no idea how to get home.

"Get up."

He sighed. What was the point? He couldn't do anything right. He should just lay here and wilt away but he gritted his teeth.

There was rustling sound as Itachi moved toward him. Sasuke kept his eyes shut. There was a heaviness between them. Itachi had been doing a lot of missions lately. He had been fighting with father and as of yesterday, Itachi's best friend had been found dead. Sasuke didn't know what to think but his father had finally given him a chance to prove himself.

And he failed.

Again.

He felt his brother kneel down on the grass. "Sasuke, even the kappa drowns sometimes."

"What does that mean?"

"It means that even experts can make mistakes and mess up." His deep throaty voice was soft. "It doesn't mean you give up."

Sasuke sat up slowly wincing at the pain in his face.

"Show me what you can do."

He was exhausted and had no idea how many steps it was to the end of the dock but he slowly rose and slid his feet along the boards, feeling for the edge. He didn't know how to swim.

He found the edge, did the hand signs, inhaled deeply, and screamed the words for the jutsu. The flames scorched his teeth and his tongue; the heat burned his face once more and tears evaporated instantaneously from his eyes.

He felt a hand on his shoulder.

"You're better than I am."

"I'll never know."

His voice was bitter. He tried not to let his blindness get him down like this but he was sick of being inferior. He was sick of trying to uphold the clan and represent them. He physically couldn't. He would never have their eyes.

The Sharingan.

Itachi took his hand and they started to walk home. Sasuke bitterly let his brother lead him. Itachi was being quieter than usual.

Maybe he felt Sasuke's pain.

Maybe it was something deeper.

"I will find a way to have the Sharingan," Sasuke said without even thinking about the plausibility of the statement. "I will be an Uchiha father will be proud of."

Itachi released Sasuke's hand. "Being an Uchiha doesn't only entail visual prowess and the fire jutstu."

Sasuke turned his face away from his brother, holding his left hand across his body while he held the right out in case anything was in the way. He knew his brother wouldn't let anything happen to him but still.

"The Uchiha rely on their emotions, their hate, their anger and their passion to accomplish great things."

For some strange reason Sasuke felt like Itachi was smiling.

A sad smile.


	2. Chapter 2

Sasuke was late.

He felt the cooling air of the setting sun around him as he felt his way quickly down the road. He knew the path by heart, every rock, every tree and every grove in the road. He had finally started the ninja academy and had awaited the day he could finally walk this path alone.

Now that day had come and he was late.

His cane tapped the stone steps of the academy.

He paused, holding his breath.

"Hey!" a raspy young voice shouted from within the building, beyond Sasuke's sense of space.

"I've seen you walking around in front of the academy before." Suddenly there was an arm around Sasuke's shoulders and Sasuke flinched, startled. Was this guy an idiot or something? You don't just jump on top of blind people like that.  
"Are you finally going to come inside or what?" the boy continued. Sasuke guessed they were probably about the same age.

"Naruto!" an exasperated voice interjected. There was a sigh.

Sasuke fidgeted uncomfortably. Were they staring at him? He lifted his head towards where he guessed the new speaker was standing.

"Uchiha Sasuke," he said after a moment. "I'm um a new student."

"Right!" Another hand grabbed his wrist. "Your brother came in yesterday to say that you were starting school."

Itachi? Sasuke thought his father had come.

A knot formed in his stomach. That wasn't good. Itachi and father were already at odds and Sasuke didn't want this to end up being just another fight.

He swallowed hard.

"I'm Iruka."

He bowed. "Hajimemashite, Iruka-Sensei."

He heard a smile in the teacher's voice. "Hajimemashite, Sasuke-san."

"Saucegay-kun…" the loud obnoxious voice said.

Sasuke frowned. This guy was an idiot.

"This is Uzumaki Naruto," Iruka-Sensei said and paused. "Would it be alright if Naruto leads you to the classroom? We're starting a little late today."

Sasuke looked down. "Yes."

This was great. He was starting school and already he had to depend on other people. What did he expect? He depended on people all the time, why would attending the ninja academy change that?

The kid named Naruto grabbed his wrist. "I'll show you around. Why aren't your eyes open?"

Idiot. "I'm blind."

"Oooooooooh. That's unfortunate." He was yanked up the stairs roughly. He stumbled but Naruto held him steady. Itachi was never this rough but then his niisan would know better than to yank him.

He could do this.

He had to prove father wrong after all. he had to prove his niisan right. He could do this. There was a reason Itachi would enroll him into the academy without his father's knowledge.

There had to be.

…

"That kid's an Uchiha. Look at his shirt."

"Wow. I wonder if he has the Sharingan."

"What's that?"

"I guess they're able to copy almost any move just by looking at it."

"That's lame."

The other kid scoffed. "Beats having to see something and then just continually fail at it like I do with these tests."

Sasuke wanted to throw his books at the kids behind him. This had been going on for hours now. Naruto had been reprimanded by Iruka-Sensei about fifteen times, falling asleep, yelling randomly, failing yet another pop quiz. And the other kids wanted to see his Sharingan.

He didn't think they realized what a blind Uchiha meant.

"Did you hear about his brother?"

"No. What about him?"

"I heard a rumor that Itachi had activated his Sharingan at age 8. Supposedly he's becoming one of the ANBU Black Ops."

"Who told you that? That's ridiculous. He's only thirteen."

"My dad."

"Your dad's an idiot."

No, Sasuke thought. You both are idiots.

Naruto was snoring again. Sasuke thought about nudging the obnoxious boy but then decided against it. He was getting tired. They had been talking about knife work all day. He was sick of this theoretical nonsense; it would do nothing for _him_ anyway. Sasuke was more of a hands-on kind of a kid.

His shoulders were tight.

He felt an urgency to go home suddenly.

…

"Very good, Sasuke!"

He heard the knife hit the wooden target with satisfaction. He could hear the other kids behind him 'ooo' and 'awww' wondering about his Uchiha power once again.

He smiled to himself. He didn't need the Sharingan for this. Itachi was right. He could still be a powerful ninja the Uchiha Clan could be proud of despite his lack of vision.

There was a slap on his shoulder.

"How'd you do that!?"

It was the obnoxious boy screaming in his sensitive ears…again.

Sasuke turned away. He smelled like ramen. He didn't feel like explaining how to pinpoint something by sounds. He had heard other kids hitting the same target and simply focused his chakra to do the same. It was easy.

He shrugged. "Didn't you hit any?"

The boy quieted. "Ummmmmm…"

Some of the kids behind them were whispering about the loud boy and wondering why Sasuke was talking to such a weirdo. Knots formed in Sasuke's stomach. This was his first day. He had been waiting for this for a long time, he couldn't be brought down by this kid.

"NARUTO!" Iruka-Sensei yelled for the loud kid as if answering Sasuke's prayers. "Have you been practicing the clone jutsu. We have another test tomorrow and from what I've seen, you better be training."

"Niiiii-channnnn!"

The sun was beginning the set. The class had gone over. Sasuke could feel the cooling temperature around him indicating night.

Oh no! He thought. His parents would panic if he wasn't back in time. Besides he had to tell them his accomplishments for the day.

And Itachi. He needed to thank his niisan for all he had done. Sasuke was so happy to finally be out of the compound and working towards becoming a ninja.

He smiled.

Hopefully Itachi was back from his mission…


	3. Chapter 3

Sasuke felt his way through the streets at night. It was too quiet and only growing quieter as he neared the Uchiha compound. The crickets even refused to chirp.

He didn't really want to go home. He had stayed after school to practice more with his teacher. Since he couldn't see the hand signs, he had to feel Iruka-sensei's hands as he did them. Even then, he still messed up. The cloning jutsu was no laughing matter.

Although the Naruto kid seemed to think it was funny for some reason.

Sasuke's issue was simply he didn't know what he looked like. His face felt smooth just like his brother's, his mother's, his father's and pretty much every other person's face. His hair was silky but wild. His brother's was smooth and long. His frame still had the frailty of childhood. Itachi's was steadfast and strong. His mother's was rounded and soft. His father's was straight and broad.

The wind blew against cold still windows. There were no sounds of flickering candles. He opened his eyes trying to use what little light sensitivity he had to gage his surroundings: there was no light.

Something was wrong.

He shivered.

There was a prickling at the back of his neck. "Is someone there?" he asked nervously but didn't stop his journey home.

He couldn't. His parents were already going to be angry with him for being out so late alone. Itachi would be too if he was back from his mission. His heart ached for his brother whom he hardly ever 'saw' anymore. Itachi was growing steadily more distant. It made Sasuke uneasy.

And the other day the other clan members had confronted his brother about Shisui who had died in the river. They thought Itachi had killed him. Itachi would never. He adored Shisui. They were best friends.

And they mentioned Itachi's Sharingan. Sasuke's stomach tightened remembering the special attention they had brought to the subject. What was so different about his brother?

He turned the corner stepping into a puddle though it hadn't rained.

He felt the familiar broken curb that signified he was nearing the house. He stayed close to the wall, reaching his hand out to slide his fingers against the stone. It was cold and silent.

Where was everyone?

He entered his home, took off his shoes. "Tadaima!" There was no answer. "Okaasan? Otousan?" He called for his parents but no one answered.

He left his cane by the door and entered the strangely cavernous house.

His heart started to race as he searched room by room for his parents. There was no reason they wouldn't be here. They had to be here. It was dinnertime. It was past dinnertime and it was so quiet. He was shaking.

Something was wrong. Something was wrong. Something bad happened.

He stopped before entering the last room. He gripped the doorknob shaking. There was a muted thud from inside. They were in there. They had to be. Someone was in there. He needed to ask them what was happening. Where was everyone?

But he was afraid.

"Move!" he urged himself shaking and frozen with fear. He couldn't think properly.

Slowly he pushed the door open.

The air was still and there was no light that he could perceive. Carefully he stepped over the threshold holding his hands out before him warily. He didn't usually feel the need to do this in his home. His parents were sure never to move anything without telling him but suddenly he felt it was necessary.

"Okaasan?" he asked softly. His voice trembled. "Otousan?"

He stumbled over something solid and yet oddly soft. He frozen knowing exactly what it was. He shook his head and bent down slowly, his fingers grazing hair—

He fell backwards. "Okaasan! Otousan!" He was shaking uncontrollably. "What happened? What's going on?"

Something shifted in the room.

_There was someone else here!?  
_ He stood up and jumped backwards breathing hard. He sniffed and the scent was familiar. The stranger stepped forward softly. Sasuke recognized that gentle determined footstep, he knew the faint smell of green tea and mint.

"Niisan!" He looked around for his brother despite himself. "What—I don't—okaasan and otousan are—!"

There was a slice through his shoulder and hot blood slide down his arm.

"Foolish otouto."

His brother's voice was cold and emotionless.

"I wonder…" He heard his brother step forward. Sasuke backed up instinctively.

"Mangekyo Sharingan."

There was the sensation of prodding chakra.

"Interesting so your blindness does benefit you after all."

"W-what are you talking about?" Sasuke stuttered feeling sick.

Hands grasped him harshly. "I pity you." Those hands pressed Sasuke's hands to the cold skin of his parents.

Sasuke screamed.

"They're not the only ones."

He was yanked out of the room and thrown into the street; there was _something_ near him. He reached out, hot tears stinging his eyes and touched cloth of a shirt damp with blood. He smelt it.

"Stop!" He was thrown towards another body. "Auntie?" He was tossed again beating his body and riddling it with bruises and scraps.

Another dead.

All cold.

All still.

He stood up slowly. "Why? Why, Itachi?" Sasuke was shaking, his heart was cloven in two, needles of anxiety and shock piercing his body. "Why did you do this?"

He searched in vain for his brother wishing he could just wake up. Please, just wake up, he begged himself. He wanted to cut off his hands dripping with the blood of _murder._

"To test the limits…of my own ability."

What? "To test…your ability?" Sasuke's brain seemed to shatter over the words. "You killed…" He couldn't finish.

"It is of great importance."

Where was he? Sasuke couldn't even pinpoint the voice but he stood up and ran toward something…anything. Just toward the darkness.

"You're out of your mind!"

Itachi punched him in the gut, breaking a red. He nearly threw up. His heart raced. Who was this guy? This wasn't his brother.

"Who are you?" He backed away in the mud, slamming into another body. "I'm…_scared._"

He couldn't breathe. Tears streamed down his cheeks.

"I…I don't wanna die!" He stood up and tried to run but he was lost, he hit a bloody wall stumbling over yet another body. "Uncle."

Footsteps pursued him with unnerving patience and control.

"Please…" he whimpered. His hands tingled with the sensation of deadness. "Don't kill me."

"You're not even worth killing."

_You're not even worth killing. _The words echoed in his head. This wasn't his brother. His brother had been the only person who thought he was worth _anything!_

"Foolish otouto… If you wish to kill me one day, foster your hatred and despise me. Surviving in such a manner as this, by all means flee and cling to your wretched life." He laughed low and cold. "If you can. You'd have to awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan to do that. If you weren't blind, you would have the potential to be one of the few people to ever awaken it."

"The Mangekyo Sharingan?"

"The Uchiha's true power. But you can't even awaken the normal Sharingan." There was a pause.

Sasuke couldn't breathe. "You're not my brother. Itachi…please!"

"I pretended to be the brother you desired for one reason. To test your potential." He stepped forward.

Sasuke pressed himself against the wall.

"You said you would find a way to awaken your Sharingan."

Sasuke's head started to spin. He remembered Shisui… had Itachi really…?

"So you have the potential to defeat me."

"You killed Shisui-san…?"

Itachi huffed. "I did what I must so I could awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan. I needed to lose the one closest to me."

Sasuke shuddered. He was falling through darkness. His world was shattered.

Dead.

"Find me when you possess the same eyes."

And there was nothing more.


	4. Chapter 4

Sasuke woke in the darkness trembling with sweat.

His brother's voice echoing in his ears.

He could have sworn he had felt hands on him before he passed out that night. The faint memory of hot rain on his face.

Six years later and he still lived in the compound full of ghosts. He didn't know why he stayed. He should have moved in with some of the older ninja who had offered to help him. Of course giving him pity because he was blind. But he knew this place better than any other corner of Konoha.

And sometimes his ears would play tricks on him like now. There was no one here. Especially not his lying weasel of a brother. He pressed his palms to his eyes wearily trying to activate his sad excuse for a Sharingan.

Something he could only describe as a color and a sense of movement flooded his field of would-be vision, the shadows in the room took shape and solidified. He would be ready for his brother one day.

There was something wet on his cheek and he brushed it aside.

There was no time for silly tears.

The Chuunin Games were beginning.

…

"Can we take a break?" Naruto complained.

Go figure Sasuke would get paired with this idiot on his team. The kid only graduated by a fluke. He had no idea what Sasuke had put himself through just to replicate himself. Iruka had caught him practicing more than once and had only briefly mentioned that many times his clones were missing their eyes.

Sasuke shivered. He couldn't even imagine what they must have looked like.

There was the slightest rustle above them.

"Dobe." Sasuke's sharp ears were attuned to even the softest sounds around them. "Look we already have one scroll. That means we have to be extra careful now since there are only so many of each and there will be other teams looking to steal our scroll."

"Sasuke's right!" Sakura squeaked. "We can't just be playing around, Naruto." Her stomach growled. "…Although, I am hungry."

"ALRIGHT!" Naruto yelled with a sudden burst of air toward Sasuke indicating the idiot had jumped into the air in triumph. "It's decided! Sasuke make a fire. Sakura get some water! And I…" He waited for dramatic effect. "I will supply the rice balls."

"Can you keep your voice down?" Sasuke hissed. "We don't want the world to know we're here! There may be others watching us looking to take our scroll."

"Right." Naruto laughed quietly and snuck up beside Sasuke. He would have jumped if he had not attuned himself to Naruto's bizarre changes in chakra. The boy took Sasuke's hand and pressed it against a pile of sticks and twigs. "Here, sweetie. This is what you need to light on fire."

Sasuke punched him.

Naruto fell back laughing manically.

Sakura was at Sasuke's side in an instant. "Sasuke! Are you okay!?"

This girl was worst than his mother was—

There was a pang of pain in his heart.

He couldn't think about that right now. They had a task to do and he, of all people, couldn't let his guard down. His…_brother _had taught him that much.

Don't rely or trust anyone.

He could take care of himself.

He had already proven that to Naruto and the others. He took a deep breath, centering the hot chakra in his core, manipulating it like dragon fire. He double-checked the location of the pile of twigs and branches.

He wouldn't want to burn anyone.

At least not unintentionally.

FLASHBACK

Naruto fell hard against the metal clanging floor, needles echoing off the walls providing Sasuke with makeshift echolocation of Haku's movements.

He was nearly paralyzed by pain both by the needles already stuck in his body but also by a massive burst of chakra by his useless eyes. The shadows were swimming in his so-called field of vision. Haku was laughing defiantly and mocking him.

He needed to control his chakra.

He needed to get an idea of Haku's movements.

He pressed the shinobi hand sign to his forehead trying to center himself, closing his eyes tightly.

"Sasuke! He's in front of you!" Naruto was struggling. "I-I can't—"

There was something Sasuke could only describe as color behind his eyes

"You don't need to."

Sasuke opened his blind eyes.

He couldn't 'see'—he would never 'see'—but that rush of 'color' flooded his broken eyes, solidifying shadows and pinpointing Haku's movements.

The true power of the Sharingan.

The masked monster was heading right for Naruto.

There was no way Sasuke was going to lose someone else because he couldn't see.

He moved faster than the needles.

END FLASHBACK

He popped another burnt rice ball in his mouth.

"We need a password. Something that only we three know so that if someone tries to put us under a genjutsu or impersonate one of us, they won't know it but we will."

"Great idea!" Sakura. Always the first to agree with him. "What do you think we should do?"

"Ramen," came Naruto's too obvious suggestion.

"That's stupid," Sakura snapped. "It should be something more stealthy like…like…"

Sasuke pinched the bridge of his nose. "The password is—"

They felt it before they heard it. The impact hitting their bodies like a tornado blowing them apart. Sasuke hit a tree somewhere in the forest. He felt the smoke dusting his skin and tried to find some sense of orientation but there was a ringing in his ears.

He reached out, leaning hard against the tree calling out for his comrades. Fuck, he thought as the ringing in his ears increased in volume.

His voice sounded muffled.

Fuck.

He felt the chakra surge in his eyes and he nearly screamed in pain as his broken vision tried to function on this heightened level.

He shivered when he perceived the snake in the shadows that made up his universe.

Someone grabbed his shoulder.

Instinctively he pulled out a kunai and pressed against the stranger's throat only to be greeted by muffled laughter.

"Sasuke?"

"Sakura." He pulled her against him taking comfort in her warm pulse. "Are you alright?"

"The blind Uchiha…interesting," the snake hissed. "Too bad I need to kill you."

Sasuke clenched his fists. Who was this guy? How did he know who he was?

He squinted though he knew it was futile.

"And yet even blind you managed to activate the Sharingan."

"Why is Naruto acting so weird?" Sakura asked shivering.

Sasuke's eyes widened. He wasn't affected by genjutsu like others were because of his blindness. "It's not Naruto."

"What's the password?" Sakura called and then immediately fell to her knees beside him, shuddering and whimpering in pain.

What happened!?

Sasuke grabbed her shoulders trying to snap her out of whatever was affecting her. "What happened, Sakura? Did he hurt you?" He felt for a wound but there was no blood.

Genjutsu.

"I am showing your friend her imminent death."

Sasuke glared at the shadow as it advanced toward them. Where was Naruto? He wasn't sure if he could take this dark chakra by himself. Something was wrong with his voice. It wasn't male or female and it _hissed. _

"Who are you?"

"I'm the one who is going to take your life." There was wild laughter erupting from the black core of this snake person. "And then perhaps…I will take your eyes even if they are supposedly useless."

He heard the sound of a kunai being thrown.


	5. Chapter 5

"I'm sorry, Sasuke," the head Med-nin said as Sasuke sat stiffly on the cold metal table.

"But hasn't medicine advanced enough by now?" He refused to open his eyes. The doctors and nurses didn't need to see his off-centered eyes anymore.

Sasuke was aware of the slow turning of pages, too precise to be actually read.

"Even if we can fix lack of blood flow that has inhibited the visual center of your brain from working, your brain wouldn't know how to interpret the information around you." The doctor's voice was cold. "It's a miracle in itself that you were still able to activate the Sharingan."

Sasuke gritted his teeth. How was he ever going to avenge his family and take down his brother if he couldn't get his sight? And now it wasn't even a question of whether they could heal him or not, it was a question—or a fact—that Sasuke wouldn't be able to understand his world visually _ever_ even if he did manage to get his sight.

The doctor pressed his hand to Sasuke's shoulder. "I'm sorry. I truly am."

He pushed the doctor's hand away and jumped off the table reaching out for the doorframe. He heard the nurses move aside for him to pass.

Fire boiled in his veins.

He yanked his retractable cane from his ninja pouch.

"Sasuke…" Kakashi said lazily. "You don't have to follow the same path as Itachi did."

…

Sasuke slammed into a branch somewhere overhead with Sakura slung over his shoulder. His leg pulsed in pain from the two-inch deep kunai wound. He concentrated his chakra into his hands and felt along the branch until he guessed they were out of sight.

"Sasuke…" Sakura's voice said slowly. He heard her shaking her head trying to wake herself up out of the genjutsu. "Sasuke! You're hurt!"

He clamped his hand over her mouth, his bangs falling in his face, "Where is he?!" he hissed. "Can he see us?"

"Who—oh—no, no he can't." She was trembling. "What do we do? Where's Naruto?"

As if on cue, Naruto's voice boomed in the forest.

"VERY FUNNY, GUYS! JUST LEAVE ME TO DEAL WITH THE GIANT SNAKE!"

The branches were shaking and there was that cold hissing laughter from down below.

"You think I don't know you're up there?"

"Who the hell is this guy?!" Naruto bellowed.

"Shut up, you idiot!" Sasuke growled pushing Sakura's worried hands away and moving towards the idiot's voice. He stayed close to the branch practically moving on all fours so he wouldn't fall. He felt hands grasp his shoulders.

Instinctively he grabbed a kunai and pressed it against their neck until he felt the familiar hot pulsing chakra of Naruto.

"Hey hey hey, Sauce-gay."

Sasuke pushed him off. "We have to get away. This man down there. He's crazy! He did something to Sakura."

"He looks gross."

"You can see him!?"

"Of course he's staring at you."

Sasuke felt something drop in the pit of his stomach. He should have been able to sense if someone was watching him. Where was his head at. He winced as he leaned on his bad leg to stand up.

"I'm going for it!"

"Going for—?"

Sasuke heard Naruto jump off the branch toward the mystery person.

"WHOEVER YOU ARE, YOU'RE GOING TO GET IT FOR MESSING WITH MY FRIENDS!"  
"Naruto you idiot!" Sakura yelled.

"Hn." Sasuke whirled toward the voices and focused all his chakra in his eyes trying to perceive what was happening. He kept hearing Naruto screaming, the popping noises of exploding clones and the hissing of giant snakes.

He pulled out his own kunai.

"WHAT ARE YOU SCARED, SASUKE!?" Naruto suddenly screamed. His voice was quaking under the pressure of battle.

_I'm scared._

He'd said that to Itachi. He felt the sensation of tripping over his dead aunts and uncles. He was going to throw up.

…_cling to your wretched life…_

His life was not wretched.

He fell back as a giant force and shadow appeared before him. He smelt the foul bitterness of snake venom.

"Oh come now, little Uchiha, are you going to make this so easy for me?"

Naruto let out a roar like a feral animal.

Sasuke backed up instinctively as the great mass moved toward him and invaded his chakra space. He foot hit the edge of the giant branch. Oh fuck—

A hand grasped his.

"Don't worry, little boy, I got you." Naruto was pulsating with power. Something was off about his aura. Something 'colorful.'

Sasuke reached out tentatively and his fingers grazed the lines indented in Naruto's cheek.

What are you? He wanted to say.

But then something clicked in his brain.

_Foolish otouto._

"I'm not a little boy!" He pulled out a tagged kunai and threw it right over Naruto's head and heard the satisfying explosion as the snake's head burst into bits of meat and blood.

"EW! SASUKE!" Naruto complained but his voice sounded pleased.

"Okay, Naruto," Sasuke said groping for the idiot. He smelled terrible like cold old meat mixed with acid and ramen. "I need you to help me pinpoint his location." He found the boy's hand and found that it was slimy. "Ugh! What happened to you?"

"Well while you and Sakura were playing hide and seek I got eaten by a giant snake!"

"Hn."

Something changed down below and the creature began laughing again. Naruto grabbed Sasuke's hand and they went flying off into the branches. Sasuke's head was spinning. He hated jumping through the trees; he lost his sense of grounding.

His head was pressed against Naruto's slimy windbreaker. His skin crawled. God, Naruto smelled horrible. Sasuke felt his stomach turn.

"Maybe we should just give him our scroll…" he grumbled.

He felt the boy shifting. As much as Naruto annoyed Sasuke, at least he could always depend on him. Then, Naruto grabbed his collar pulling him up to force Sasuke to look at him—well, joke's on him, he thought bitterly.

"THE SASUKE I KNOW WOULD NEVER SAY THAT!"

Oh, god this kid was so annoying. Couldn't he see what this creep did to Sakura—

Where was she anyway?

"Look at that the Uchiha is getting the demon fox all riled up…" came that slithering voice. It gave Sasuke chills.

Suddenly Naruto was swept away and Sasuke dropped to the branch, clinging to it for dear life.

"H-h-hey!" Naruto was screaming.

And Sasuke could do nothing.

"Oh look, even the mark that imprisons the demon is showing." There was a low chuckle. "How interesting… But I didn't come here for you…just yet."

Naruto screamed.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura yelled from somewhere high up. "Naruto may be an idiot but don't get so down on yourself!"

"I believe in you!" Naruto screamed before Sasuke heard the boy's body hit one of the trees.

"At least Naruto wasn't afraid to fight!"

Sasuke whirled activating his Sharingan and opening his dead eyes wide. "Just shut up! Both of you!"

He pinpointed the pulsating shadow below using his other senses to define the man's chakra. This wasn't a female at all. That chakra definitely didn't fit the body. Who was this guy?

He flew at the man, pulling the cords and attaching them to the trees, spinning around the creature before it could move and tying it to a trunk. There was wild laughter.

"I knew it!" The sound of a tongue slowly licking lips.

Sasuke shuddered.

"You're perfect."

Sasuke paused for half a second—_Perfect?_ Then he pulled the cords tight, took a deep breath, centered his chakra. "Fire-style! Dragon flame jutsu!"

He felt the flames burn his esophagus from his rush but he aimed true, using the cords to aim for him. There was no way his flames missed. He felt the body of the creature incinerate.

Silence.

The flames cooled.

Sasuke moved toward the shadow focusing all his chakra to his senses, his Sharingan. _The abnormal chakra was untouched._

Laughter flooded his ears.

"You're soooooo perrrrfect!"

"Oh my god, Sasuke!" Sakura screamed. "What is that? Do you see her…or _his face! It's peeling off!"_

"I knew your chakra didn't align with your body." Sasuke's voice was cold. "Who are you?"

The shadow jumped at him. Sasuke flew backwards trusting completely in Sakura to grab him. He felt little warm hands on his shoulders. His lips turned up in the smallest most indiscernible smile.

"This was really all I came here for."

What?

The man creature clapped his hands in a handsign. Something stretched and broken like skin over bone, and then there were two sharp needles in Sasuke's neck. His body froze.

"Sasuke-kun!"

Stop yelling my name and help—Sasuke thought before fire coursed through his veins. Hair drapped over his shoulder and lips kissed his neck where the fangs were. A small voice whispered.

"I can give you the eyes you've always wanted."

And then he didn't hear anything else. The world shook. His Sharingan dissipated and crows screamed in the distance.

There was nothing but dark nightmares and pain.

Nothing.

Blackness and pain.

Nothing.

…_the eyes you've always wanted._


End file.
